Intelligence leaders warned Wednesday of mounting threats from China and domestic terrorism fueled by misinformation on social media at a hearing on global threats to the nation.
Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee laughed as director of the National Intelligence Service April Haines
Avril Haines Overnight: Biden officially rolls out Afghanistan withdrawal plan | Probe Finds Problems Using DC Guard Helicopters During June Hillicon Valley Protests: Intel Leaders Push for Violation Reporting Act | Coinbase goes public on Sept. 11, victims call for release of FBI report detailing Saudi Arabia’s involvement in attacks MORE, along with the leaders of the CIA, the FBI and the National Security Agency, on threats ranging from troop withdrawals from Afghanistan to disinformation and domestic terrorism to cyber attacks.
The hearing, which lasted just under three hours and was largely bipartisan in nature, was in stark contrast to the last global threat briefing in 2019, when intelligence leaders testified on issues such as election interference and North Korean nuclear threats that contradicted some from the former President Trump
Trump Mocks Murkowski, Cheney Election Opportunities Race Debate Seizes Congress US Return to Paris Agreement Gives Momentum to Cities Sustainability Efforts MORE‘s views.
The global threat hearing was abandoned under the Trump administration.
The threats discussed at the hearing and detailed in the 2021 Global Threat Assessment released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, targeting China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.
“I suspect that 90 percent, if not more, of our threats could be traced to one of five things: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea or global terrorism,” said Sen. Marco Rubio
Marco Antonio Rubio The Memo: Biden Puts 9/11 Era In Back View Intelligence Leaders Push For Mandatory Breach Reporting Act Intelligence Leaders Warn About Threats From China, Domestic Terrorism MORE (Fla.), The panel’s ranking Republican.
“Those five sources make up a substantial percentage of all the challenges we face,” he added.
Threats from China, particularly in the area of technology competition, were central to both the annual review and Wednesday’s questions.
“I don’t think there is a country that poses a greater threat to our innovation, our economic security and our democratic ideas,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. He once said that a new investigation is opened every 10 hours regarding China.
Haines described China as an “unparalleled priority for the intelligence community” and described it as “an increasingly close competitor” to the United States.
Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner
Mark Robert Warner Intelligence leaders push for mandatory breach notification law Intelligence leaders warn of threats from China, domestic terrorism Wray: FBI opens investigation into China every 10 hours MORE (D-Va.) And other senators stressed that concerns about the Chinese government’s policies were completely separate from the Chinese people or Chinese Americans, especially after increasing discrimination against Asian Americans.
“I want to warn our fellow Americans that false equities will only sow suspicion, division, and hatred … and play into Beijing’s hands,” Warner said.
Domestic terrorism also played a greater role in the hearing after the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
Wray warned that the social media echo chamber exacerbated the problem.
“Social media has in many ways become the main enhancer of extremism in domestic violence, as well as malicious foreign influence,” he said.
“People need to better understand what information they are reading,” he added. “A high level of critical skepticism is a crucial ingredient, not only to protect against foreign disinformation, but also violent extremism. There are all kinds of things on the Internet that masquerade as fact, but it just isn’t.”
Wray was criticized by Sen. Martin Heinrich
Martin Trevor Heinrich Intelligence leaders warn of threats from China, domestic terrorism Top academics defame Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act Groups petition EPA to remove ethane and methane from list of substances exempt from emission limits MORE (DN.M.) at the hearing for failing to release a report the FBI prepared on QAnon, a far-right conspiracy claiming there is a global child trafficking ring that plotted against President Trump while in office.
“How come you can’t or won’t tell the American people directly about the threat posed by following the QAnon conspiracy theory?” Heinrich said.
The FBI has previously resisted pressure from Democrats to focus more directly on the political and racial beliefs of those it is investigating.
Wray said the FBI must be careful to stay focused on activities that could lead to violence or violate federal law.
“That doesn’t mean rhetoric isn’t a social problem that doesn’t need to be addressed,” he said.
Warner opened the hearing by stressing the need for transparency with the public about national security threats, criticizing former Trump administration intelligence leaders for not giving testimony on these issues.
“I was appalled last year when the Director of National Intelligence refused to appear publicly before our committee for this hearing and I am pleased that we are resuming this annual tradition,” Warner said after describing the importance of such hearings.
Some lawmakers urged at the hearing that intelligence agencies should be given more authority to block malicious actors, something that agencies have opposed in the face of civil liberty concerns.
Her. Kirsten Gillibrand
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“These are serious, serious problems, and I don’t like to hear that we have blind spots,” she said.
The intelligence leaders will return to Capitol Hill on Thursday to testify before the House Intelligence Committee on the same wide variety of threats.